When it comes to the common household insect pests, ants, fleas, and roaches, they are all annoying and yet it is only the cockroach particularly the large flying ones (those are American cockroaches by the way, and they are actually relative rare as a cockroach pest species, with the most common being the much smaller and largely flightless German cockroach) that can provoke such a visceral reaction of fear and disgust. I posit that this is because they are so much larger than ants or fleas, we can see every detail of their alien insectoid bodies with our naked eye.

Fortunately, we live in the 21st century and as such we have many different options when it comes to eliminating these household pests. While you can always swat them on sight, that won’t even make a dent in their numbers and ‘old housewife’ methods such as herbs, cucumbers, and lemons are probably as effective at repelling cockroaches as garlic is at repelling vampires; simply pure fiction. You should kill roaches using poison as that is the best way to get rid of cockroaches according to experts. Chemicals and pesticides are by far the most effective ways of eliminating cockroaches, even more so than other pests because cockroaches eat their dead, which greatly enhances the effectiveness of poison in reducing roach populations. However, use of these chemicals and pesticides, while mostly safe (otherwise they wouldn’t even be sold in the first place) does come with its own risks. In this article we will be educating you on the various types of active ingredients in roach pesticides, how they work, and what precautions to take.

Avermectin

Originally developed to treat parasitical worm infections, avermectin works by disrupting transmission of electrical activity in invertebrate nerve and muscle cells, causing death by paralysis. The active ingredient you should look out for in the labels would be ‘abamectin’. While used for cockroach control, it is used more in ant bait traps. While it is highly toxic in acute form, its concentration in such baits is very low, typically under 0.05%. Because it is designed to target invertebrates, it is highly toxic to fish. Quite safe to handle as it is not readily absorbed through the skin.

Borates

The most common would be borax or boric acid. It is an acute stomach poison for insects that disrupts their metabolic system but is relatively non-toxic to humans. However, it is toxic to plants so avoid using boric acid sprays unless you like brown and wilted house plants.

Hydramethylnon

A slow acting poison to insects that works by disrupting energy production in their cells. Its toxicity is quite low to humans or other mammals (however very high doses have been linked to development of small testes in males) and it is not readily absorbed through the skin. However it is highly toxic to fish and other aquatic life.

Fipronil

A poison that disrupts the central nervous system of insects. Also highly toxic to fish and other aquatic invertebrates as well as bees, so avoid using them in your garden where bees pollinate. Fipronil can even poison a cockroach’s feces, which roaches also eat (gross!) and make the poison even more effective. While it can be moderately toxic to mammals if ingested, it is not readily absorbed through the skin; further it will not cause any nervous system damage due to the significant differences between mammalian and insectoid nervous systems.

Pyrethroids

A class of pesticide that is derived from the chrysanthemum flower (and you thought all it was good for was tea!). Don’t be fooled however, just because it is a natural doesn’t mean it isn’t highly toxic. This toxin affects the nervous system of insects is highly toxic to felines. As such, pyrethroids are often found in flea sprays made for dogs specifically. Nevertheless, if ingested or inhaled it can cause moderate toxicity in other mammals. Pyrehthroids are probably one of the most common and oldest form of insecticides. Also, some studies have shown that due to its prevalence, cockroaches, in particular the German cockroach, has begun to develop cross resistance to it.

Diatomaceous Earth

Might not even be considered a pesticide as it is completely non-toxic. These are actually silica particles made from the fossils of diatoms (prehistoric single-celled organisms) and they cut the waxy exoskeleton of insects and absorb their oils and lipids, resulting in death via dehydration. While effective in killing cockroaches after contact, as it is not a poison, it will not result in a multiplier effect from roaches devouring other dead roaches and hence is not as effective against cockroaches. Recommended for widespread outdoor use.

Mattresses come in so many different versions, types and firmness that it can be mind blogging when trying to decide which is best for you. For anyone who has back pain at all, it is certainly better to opt for firmer mattresses. Just make sure that the base of the mattress comes with a divan. A solid divan can make a world of difference, in terms of the overall support and comfort that you can get out of it. Your back pain problems will certainly diminish as well with the help of a solid and firm mattress.

For those concerned with mattress prices, we recommend trying out a pocket sprung mattress. Pocket sprung mattresses are very flexible in the sense that they have a huge price range, which means you get to decide how much you wish to spend on it. Obviously, the higher the price is, the more features and support you’re essentially getting from the mattress. The better ones will probably have a higher spring count, which is necessary especially if your mattress size is huge. A king size mattress, for example, requires a much higher spring count in order to maintain its comfort. A higher spring count also means that less pressure is exerted on each spring, thus allowing all of them to last longer as a whole. Take a look at these king mattresses if you are searching for the best king size mattress in the market today.

If you’re thinking about using your mattress for the next 10 years or so, you may as well pay the premium now so that you don’t have to change it as often. The cheaper mattresses might only last you 5 years or so. The support factor is equally as important in choosing the right type of mattress for you. For example, if a mattress is heavily padded on the top, that adds a solid amount of support and that can be important especially for heavy users. Heavy people might find thinner mattresses a huge nuisance since it will feel like they are sleeping on a really hard surface when there’s not enough material to compress due to their weight.

In such scenarios, open coil mattresses could be the solution. With an open coil mattress, the springs are essentially grouped together as a whole in the bottom or middle layer. With this, the entire mattress is essentially supported by all the springs at once. This allows equal weight distribution across the entire surface, something which pocket sprung mattresses do not allow for. Pocket sprung mattresses, on the other hand, have hundreds or in some cases thousands of individually pocketed springs which are then compiled together in the mattress.

Because of the extra work that have to be put into wrapping each individual coil as well as making sure they function perfectly, pocket sprung mattresses are considered a luxury by many. As a result, these tend to be much more expensive too. Each spring moves independently of one another, which is great for couples who’re sharing a single bed. When one person gets up from one side of the bed, the mattress remains perfectly still on the other side. Motion transfer is not as noticeable on this mattress than any others, including memory foam mattresses.

Party season is here and if you plan to host a party at home, you will surely be reading up on how to create a great party space in your house! This involves decorating the area with streamers, balloons, you name it! Be sure to also prepare some fun party games to keep your guests entertained. Everyone who’s ever hosted party knows the number one fear of every party host: “What if my party sucks and is boring?” accompanied by vivid visions of being socially ostracized with everybody from now to forever always referring to the party you hosted as ‘the one that like, totally sucked’. Well the good news is that party games are a great way to add life to your party, and the great part is that as the games become more engaging and more people participate, the whole party atmosphere can change. Take a look at these fun games for parties or alternatively, try some of these unique, fun, and silly party games that are great for those with people of all ages.

Guess the Gargled Song

Fill a glass with beverage of choice, put in mouth and proceed to gargle a tune. Party guests will then try to guess which one. Tip: make sure your party has many young kids or drunken adults before trying to get this one going. If you’re playing with kids, use plastic cups. This will avoid from creating a mess in your house if the kid breaks the glass.

Arm Wrestling

An instant classic, especially if your party has more males than females (watch as males grunt and strain to establish dominance within the pack). You would need to secretly enlist the help of one male in the room to start the challenge though. Caution: Old men are stronger than they appear; beware of challenging grandpa.

A Murderer in the Dark

All participants are handed small pieces of paper. Leave all but two blank, and mark one ‘detective’ and the other ‘murderer’. Distribution should be random. The participant who is the detective should announce himself but the murderer should stay silent. Now for the fun part: turn off all the lights in the room; the darker the room, the better. Make sure you remove all breakable items such as glass vases and glass ornaments. Remember to always create a safe but fun place for your party at home. No one except the murderer is allowed to touch another person, and if you get touched you must scream. The murderer chooses a victim, who will then shout out. The detective has to question everyone, who must tell the truth (except the murderer of course). The detective has two tries to guess the murderer. Forcible interrogations are disallowed.

Forehead Celebrity Detective

Everyone sits in a circle with some pens and Post-it notes. One person starts by writing a celebrity or famous person’s name on a Post-It note and sticking it on the forehead of the person next to them. The person with the note on his forehead has to ask other players yes or no until they figure out his or her identity.

Guess the Adverb

For you people who slept in English class, examples of adverbs would by quickly, happily, or reluctantly. The game works like this: one person leaves the room and the remaining participants choose and adverb. Once a decision has been reached, the person comes back into the room and tries to guess the adverb chosen. He can choose to ask questions and say that the answer must be ‘in the manner of the word’ or ask the players to act out a situation (for example, walking, playing tennis) ‘in the manner of the word’. This game allows for a good mix of verbal and physical action.

Spot the Difference

A great physical reaction of those puzzles you use to see in magazines. For this game, split the participants into two teams. A team is allowed a minute to examine the room and then they have to leave. The remaining team then moves five objects in the room around. The other team has to correctly identify which objects were moved.

Table Soccer

This is a game for those of you who have large kitchens at home. Using an erasable marker, mark two goals at each end of a kitchen table. Place a ping pong ball in the middle. Split players into two teams, ideally no more than two or three per team. Each participant is given straws and the objective is to blow the ping pong ball into the opposing team’s goal. Warning: this will likely leave spittle all over your kitchen table.

Blind Man’s Bluff

People of all ages tend to enjoy this game, especially kids and inebriated adults. Blindfold one person and then spin him or her around three times. Everyone else scatters and the blind man has to play catch. Upon catching someone, they have to identify them by touch. Warning: Be careful who you choose as the blind man; you don’t want to open yourself up to a harassment charge. Proceed with caution.

Who Blinks First Loses

We don’t really need to explain the mechanics of this game, do we? Just like arm wrestling, the who-blinks-first game can be a fun dominance-type game. Caution: The guy who defeats everyone at this game might just be a serial killer.

When we were kids, I’m sure many of us had novelty bedsheets whether it was NASCAR or Power Rangers, with the lucky few even having the privilege of novelty beds themselves. As kids, having those bedsheets was considered ‘cool’ and ‘totally wicked awesome’. Well as we grow and mature into adulthood, society deems it weird for a fully grown adult to still be having Captain Planet bedsheets, proving once and for all that society tries its best to mold adults into boring worker drones. As adults we can only express ourselves through acceptable corporate brands, such as being an Apple fanboy, or a luxury watch enthusiast. You can be different, but not too different (I’m so different, I use this memory foam pillow which is voted the best pillow for neck pain, take that conformists! That’s really because I suffer from neck pains due to using pillows without adequate support in the past)

So what’s a grownup nerd to do then? Well for sure you can keep your latest videogame consoles and gaming PCs in your wife-allowed ‘man cave’, but what if you wish to express your inner nerd in even more areas of your life? Well, have no fear, because these nerdy novelty pillows are here!

Nintendo Game Boy Pillow – This novelty pillow which is obviously shaped like a massively oversized Nintendo Game Boy will allow you to reminisce on the good times of playing Mario Bros or Street Fighter on your game boy as a kid. The best part is that the game boy front is not just a screen print; it’s actually additional layers stitched on top for a more realistic 3-D feel (the A and B buttons are even small tiny round cushions sewn on top). A great addition for your nerd den (or bedroom, if you live alone and don’t care too much about bringing back overnight guests); bonus points if you actually play your real Nintendo Game Boy while resting on this pillow.

Space Invaders Pillow – Was Space Invaders one of the most addictive games ever created? Based on my personal experience, I would say 100% yes. I must have blown countless hours into that game (that I really should have used to play outside and get some exercise, but I digress) and these pillows, measuring 14 inches by 14 inches each with those famously pixelated aliens represented in white on a dark blue background are a great way to reminisce on such good times while chilling on your couch. All the different alien designs are represented of course.

Glow In The Dark Star Trek Pillows – Ahhhh, Trekkies. No quicker way to set them off than by insulting Captain Kirk or Picard or saying one is better than the other; depending on the Trekkie you might either get vehement agreement or a challenge of a nerd duel to the death. If you are a diehard Trekkie, then what better way to demonstrate your love than by these Star Trek Glow in the Dark Pillows? Featuring designs of either the Enterprise or Spock (silhouetted in black with the Starfleet Academy logo outlined in silver), these pillows are almost a must-have for the hardcore Trekkie.

Super Mario Bros Question Mark Pillow – Speaking of game boys and Mario Bros here comes the Super Mario Bros Question Mark pillow! While this pillow does not feature our mustached Italian protagonists, it does feature the iconic ‘question mark block’ that made you crave what was inside when playing the game; simple token or mushroom? Unfortunately no matter how many times you whack your head on this pillow, the only mushroom you might find will be the lump that grows on your head.

NES Controller Pillow – Another old school geek classic, there must be legions of nerds out there who still have their NES controller gathering dust in their attic or garage. While most NES games can now be reliably emulated on your computer, nothing beats the feeling of playing it on the NES itself. The NES Controller pillow then is a great addition to your geek den, and comes in a four set, two large and two small with the larger pillows measuring 18 inches by 9 inches and the smaller ones measuring 12 inches by 6 inches. They’re comfortable too, made of ecospun felt, and would no doubt make great geeky couch pillows.

Geeks everywhere rejoice; while you may have been made fun of in school, you can rest assured that you are the ones that have gotten the last laugh, what with your computer science and engineering degrees and your six-figure salaries. So why not flaunt your geekiness, it is part of who you are after all, and get some of these nerdy novelty pillows?